The Emotional Roller Coaster.. Food

Holidays... everywhere there is food! Yesterday I had some big highs and some big lows... all related to food. My college son is home for the week, and I want to cook all his favorites.. instead I offer him diet chili... healthy burger with no bun... which he eats with a smile.. only makes me want to cook something even more. Sorry Patrick, no holiday treats here :(

Yesterday we were planning on doing the grocery shopping so I am getting ready to go. I am trying to figure out what to wear and decided to try on some of the clothes that were in the too small tote... two new pairs of jeans fit.. size 18! Same size I was when I met Dave... mind you they are still a little tight.. but I wore them out shopping *happy dance* I am not even half way to what I want to lose total but it is moving right along.

Now to do the price matching and coupon matching for my grocery shopping trip.. lay out all the fliers and start going through them.. Arghhh :( Everything Thanksgiving is in there.. every baking item you would ever need... every frozen treat... candy... cool whip.. pies.. yams.. turkeys.. anything and everything I WANT IT ALL!!! I get none of it *pout* Think size 18... size 16... think muscle not fat.. think.. skinny... think healthy... ok I am back on track and ready for the store.

Or so I thought... talk about a battle... looking the to the left... cookies... to the right.. cider...eggnog... more baking stuff and treats... piled at the end of every aisle is everything Not on my list... all the pretty colors... this stuff is trying to jump into my cart. I am going through the store as quick as I can.. grabbing my rice cakes.. my V8 and my cauliflower and just trying to get out of there asap. I wish it was asap.. instead we get to spend 30 minutes in checkout .. everyone else in the store has all their Thanksgiving stuff in the carts.. and I just stand there watching it all scroll down the belt.

Into the car... headed home.. and the tears start... so much balancing... I love being able to wear my smaller clothes... I love being able to tie my shoes... I love that my feet do not hurt me all the time (wish it was helping my shoulder) there is so much wonderful happening right now as each pound falls off... but I do miss cooking.. and baking.. and feeding people and just enjoying food. I have used food as comfort for a long time... I have "taken care" of people by feeding them... food makes things better... but not really.. I mean it still can... I can still cook and bake and feed people.. but healthy food is not yet fun or comforting to me.. even though Dave said I make a good chili out of some horrible vegetables.

This phase of our diet is hard because the foods we eat are so limited that there are not a lot of options on what and how to make things... starting next week we are back into the 3rd phase and it brings more selection and options and that will help.. I am totally making a cheese cake again :) I also know that I just need to hang on and keep at it and that I will be able to find comfort in cooking, eating and feeding people again... I am sure it will be even more comforting knowing we will all be healthier for it.

Santa Needs to Hold His Horses

While reading blogs this morning I came across a friends post about Rushing the Holidays and I decided to add my two cents here. I am loving all the cartoons this year that are going around about this subject.

Back in September, before the kids were even back in school.. I walked into Costco and was surrounded with Christmas. I remember just standing there sort of amazed. It was finally warm after a very mild summer and they were already pushing Christmas. Not cool in my book!

We do not do much for the holidays.. never have... doubt we ever will. I am not big on the present things... never did the Santa thing at our house.. not while growing up or while raising my kids. I am not a big religious person but I do believe that this holiday is so unrelated to what it should be representing... people getting trampled on black Friday in their search for saving a buck and yet buying the coolest presents... people stressed out and fighting about who is going where on Christmas eve and Christmas morning.

Stressed.... does anyone.. ANYONE... manage to make it from Halloween to Valentines without being stressed out? We do nothing for the holidays and yet they always come with stress. Growing up there was always a fight or bad attitude on Christmas day... added to that it was always too hot at grandmas house and someone ( yes most often me ) ate too much and ended up with a tummy ache. All in all I have wonderful holiday memories.. don't get me wrong.... but looking back... so much stress. Then as an adult... when my children were babies.. I did the same thing only worse to my kids.

Last year... my oven was not working for Thanksgiving so we bought a pre made dinner from the local grocery store... there was only a couple of us here... it was fine.. not home made and awesome by any means... but it was good and it was super easy.. and lot less stress.. ordered it and then picked it up. Then Christmas was pretty awesome... we did NOTHING!! We stayed in our jammies all day I think... got up late.. ate some cinnamon rolls... watched lots of movies... maybe worked in the shop a bit... but we were super lazy.... I had told my son he could stop by since he had no other plans.. and he was so sweet he called first.. well I was being too lazy and did not even get his message so he did not come over.. that part made me sad... I would have loved to have had him visit.

I do not want to ever put my kids in a situation where they have to schedule around us... they are growing up and having relationship that come with whole other families.. right now there are no grand kids but someday there will be.. and everyone wants to see the grand kids. Well my parents did something wonderful ( I think ) for Christmas with us.. when the kids were little they did the Christmas morning thing for us all.. but it started to get too stressful..with too many schedules... so they moved Christmas to a week or two later. This has so many advantages... one.. no stress... no schedule conflicts... awesome!! Two... after Christmas shopping sales... everyone knows what everyone got and did not get and we can go shopping and hit all the great sales.. I know they are rumored to be after Thanksgiving but after Christmas is really the time to go... the stores know you will be there returning stuff anyway so they put up the end of the year sales to entice you even more :)

Last year I had my kids over after the new year... it was so relaxed... I just picked a day and called them up.. told them they could stop by any time between noon and 5... everyone brought a snack and we all just spent the day visiting and catching up. I think I want to do something like that again this year... no stress.. no mess. I will just pick a day and invite everyone.. they can stop by and visit or not. Can bring a snack but no presents... until there are little kids... and just a nice relaxing fun day with family and friends. A great way to start our New Years

And back to topic... geesh I can ramble like no one else in the world! I think that if we start planning this now it might work so I am going to share with you all and see who is on board with me. One way to avoid all this holiday stress would be... to avoid this set of holidays... I am thinking we can put in a big custom order for Bunny hats I have also seen bunny ears in her shop... and as soon as the 4th of July is over we start wearing them while out shopping.. and we keep asking all the clerks for plastic eggs and Easter grass... Yeah I know it won't work... but it might be fun :) I know I just linked to her shop with the bunny hats.. but... seriously.. if you have little kids.. or grand kids... my friends shop is so much fun... Knees and Paws Kids love to use their imagination and they love to dress up and play.. and that is what her shop is all about! NO stress just fun!

Beach Walk

Perfect day for sailing... sunny and windy


Starfish "hiding" in the seaweed so the seagulls do not eat them.


The little bit of beach not covered in seaweed today


Little starfish "playing" in the surf


Treasures found today while walking on the beach

After all the wind we have had I had thought there would be a lot of treasures... which there might be.. but 99% of the beach is covered in thick slimy seaweed so I will wait a couple of days for that to wash out and then head back out to see what is there :)

Enter To Win

This is a list of places you can enter daily to win different things.. I will try to keep this updated.. if you find one that is no longer valid please let me know.. if you know of one not on the list.. please let me know :)

Facebook Links:

Amazon sweepstakes win a kindle and your friends can win too.. sign up once

Carmex

Folgers

Lee Jeans

Red Vines

Little Debbie

Quaker

Ghiradelli

This is on their website.. not facebook... you just answer the ten questions... you do not have to get them all right to win... so I have heard... I have yet to win.. but you do get a coupon option even if you lose :)

Corky Kouture This is a blog giveaway.. enter until Dec. 5th

Food Blog Giveaway Win a crock pot.. sign up until Nov. 30th

Stormy Beach

Winter is arriving... with the wind and the rain. I love the beach and this time of year is my favorite... the wind comes in crashing the waves on the shore and then rips them back out.. dragging sand and rocks and logs with it... churning it all up and uncovering all the treasures.

There is power and life on the beach in a storm and one never knows what little bits of beautiful it may uncover and leave laying on the beach to be found. Yesterday there was a period of strong wind gust and it happened to be at high tide.. which was not all that high.. but mixed with the wind gust is made it so much more powerful and amazing. We were only out there for a few minutes yesterday and got a couple of pictures is all... I will be heading out there this week to see what has been turned up so there will be more pictures soon... this time of year.. there will be a lot of beach pictures :)

Normally at a 10.4 tide the water would be many feet from the little sea wall there... with plenty of room to walk down the beach.. and.. this is not big ocean beach.. most of the time we have little ripples not big frothy waves.

I am a little concerned though as I have been reading reports that items from the Japan earthquake and tsunami are expected to start washing up on beaches before too long.. with the most of it arriving in 2013. Beach Combers Alert Even though I do not expect any to wash up on the beach I spend time on..it would have to go around Whidbey island. I do know I will be looking at each item a bit differently. That tsunami really affected my time on the beach... I have not walked the shore since without being thankful for everything I have or without thinking on those who lost so much.